The invention relates to wound-stimulated DNA from Solanum Tuberosum as well as parts thereof, the use of such for the production of gene products in higher plants using wound or pathogen attack, DNA-propagation vectors containing the same, and plants or plant parts containing the same.
It is known that the mechanical injury of plant tissue can cause morphological and physiological changes. Thus, the activity of various enzymes increases after the wounding, for example of phenylalanine-ammonialyase and peroxidases in potato tubers, extensin in the storage tissue of carrots, fatty acid synthetase in potato tubers and proteinase-inhibitors in tomato and potato leaves. For some of these enzymes, the increase in activity is associated with increased mRNA amounts. One of the best understood wound-induced genes is the proteinase-inhibitor in tomatoes and potatoes; in wounded leaves, the mRNA for this gene is significantly increased.
The wound-induced development of genes in plants is of fundamental interest, because in this area the promoters that become active are capable of specifically activating the corresponding structure gene after wounding. Promoters of this kind in connection with other genes which, for example, code for resistance, or code substances that are effective as antibiotics, or promote the healing of wounding, are naturally of great economic interest, if they can be inserted into the genetic material of other plants.
It has now been found that relatively high concentration of induced mRNA are specifically present in wounded and/or microbially attacked potato plants. This mRNA can be isolated and characterized. It does not appear in healthy, uninjured plants.